Page 77 of Alliance Bride
Then someone shouted, “Raiders!” and his blood, which had flowed so warmly a moment ago, turned to ice.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Eadlyncouldn’tmove.
For several frantic heartbeats, her body refused to obey her. One moment, she was standing by Aevar, still tasting his kiss on her lips. The next, she was drowning in a roar of panic so sudden it seemed the world had turned inside out.
She didn’t even know where to go, what to do, until Aevar’s hand gripped her arm, yanking her from the mire of shock. He shoved her forward. Her feet stumbled in the sand as screams ripped across the beach, high-pitched and panicked. Then came the brutal clang of metal on metal, an awful, grating sound that made her teeth ache. The din of battle swelled like a tide, swallowing the laughter and music that had filled the air only moments before. Somewhere in the chaos, Runar’s voice thundered commands, rising above the terror.
They wove through the frantic crowd as men grabbed for weapons from the racks, torches flared, and children wailed. Eadlyn struggled to keep her balance. The world tilted, every shadow full of threat. Ahead she caught sight of Ranvi holding Alvir, whoscreamed with wide, terrified eyes. Trygg clung to her skirts. Inga stood nearby with Katla in her arms, the girl’s tear-streaked face pale as bone.
Aevar released her arm.
The sudden loss of his steady hand left her floundering as though she were adrift in a raging storm. She spun around. Their eyes met, but only for a moment. Long enough for her to see the turmoil in his expression before he turned and disappeared into the chaos.
“Women and children to the longhouse!” Runar shouted over the clamor.
Her legs refused to move again, but she forced her limbs to obey, each step a war against the terror clawing its way up her throat. She moved closer to Ranvi and Inga, helping to keep the children sheltered between them, and gasped a prayer for protection, barely aware of her own voice.
Aevar reappeared, this time with Kian, both armed with sword and shield. They took up positions beside Runar, Erik, Braan, and Heida, closing in around the women and children like a wall of flesh and iron. Their presence was a shield of its own, but it didn’t stop the pressure building inside Eadlyn. A tight, choking ache that constricted her ribcage.
They moved as one toward the longhouse, the path darker now without the bonfires to light the way. Every shadow seemed to lurch forward. Eadlyn kept looking over her shoulder, heart pounding like a drumbeat in her skull. Still, she saw nothing of their attackers. Only the crashing, shouting, and screaming told her the danger was very real. Aevar remained behind her, standing between her and whatever horror lurked in the darkness.
A sound pierced the air. A cry, unnatural and cold as a grave. Two figures exploded from the shadows like specters, their faces white in the moonlight. Black circles ringed their eyes, and jagged streaks ran down their cheeks like blood. One lunged straight for her.
Eadlyn’s scream caught, strangled in her throat.
Aevar was there in an instant, shield raised. The raider’s blade struck with a crack so close it thudded in her chest. Swords met, ringing in her ears. Aevar’s blade flashed, and the attacker dropped with a gurgle. To Aevar’s left, Kian felled the second man, and they were moving again.
Eadlyn couldn’t tell how far they had left. The path she had walked so many times in daylight now stretched endlessly in the dark. But then they reached the longhouse. She darted past the doors with Ranvi and Inga. Inside, the air was no less tense. Women and children poured in, some crying, others wide-eyed with shock. Eadlyn turned back toward Aevar. His face was hard, set in the same fierce lines she’d seen the day he faced down Sig. Yet something else lurked in his eyes when he looked at her. Fear.
Not for himself. For her.
“Stay here,” he said, his voice rough.
Before she could speak, he turned and joined Runar and Kian at the door. A few more women rushed past them. Braan paused at the threshold and turned to Heida. “Guard the door.”
There was a beat of hesitation. A war raged in Heida’s posture and her white-knuckled grip on her axe, but duty won, and she nodded. Braan turned to join his father and brothers. A moment later, the door slammed shut, muffling the chaos outside. Heida dropped the bar across it, and Eadlyn flinched at the heavy thud.
Dread settled like a smothering blanket over the longhouse. Children sobbed. Mothers clutched them tightly, whispering trembling words. Eadlyn’s hands wouldn’t stop shaking, and her thoughts spiraled. The thick door was the only thing separating them from the horrors that raged outside. Heida paced in front of it like a caged predator, constantly readjusting her grip on her axe. If their enemies breached that door, she was their last defense.
A hand on Eadlyn’s shoulder made her jump. Inga stood beside her, Katla pressed to her side. Her face was calm and resolute. She said nothing, just gave Eadlyn a nod. The simple gesture almost undid her. Unshed tears stung like smoke behind her eyes, but she wouldn’t cry. Tears wouldn’t stop the blades.
Only One could.
So, once again, she lifted her prayers. For the women. For the children. For the warriors outside the doors.
And most of all, for the man who had slammed his shield between her and death.
A Kalgoran almost twice Aevar’s size charged with a guttural roar, his blade catching the light of the torches as it slashed toward Aevar’s skull. He raised his shield just in time. The blow struck like a falling tree, splintering the wood and rattling his bones. The edge of the blade sliced into the shield’s grain inches from his hand.
Aevar grunted and shoved upward, throwing the man’s sword wide. He countered with his own, but the Kalgoran dodged, agile for his size, and the blade only grazed his side. Snarling, the raiderattacked again. Aevar ducked the next swing and lunged low, driving his sword deep into the man’s leg. The Kalgoran howled and dropped to his knees, trying to raise his shield, but Aevar was faster. He swung, and his blade bit into the man’s neck. The body crumpled and twitched as it hit the dirt.
Aevar scanned the battlefield. Smoke curled from torches, mixing with the copper stench of blood. Screams and metal rang through the night. The Kalgorans had spread like rot, fast and choking.
A shout drew his attention. Ingvald.
Aevar turned as a Kalgoran dropped from a rooftop like a demon from the sky, crashing into the huskarl and dragging him to the ground. The two struggled, fists pounding, weapons lost in the dirt. A dagger glinted in the Kalgoran’s hand, rising above Ingvald.
